Blue Beetle #1

So everyone gets to come back to life except Ted Kord?

Blue Beetle opens with the Origin Story of the Scarab which transforms the holder into Blue Beetle. I don't think Ted Kord ever made use of the scarab though. His predecessor, Dan Garrett, found and use it though. So, this Scarab is from some race or organization of intergalactic beings called The Reach. They subdue planets by sending out Space Scarabs to land on planets with intelligent life. The Scarabs then possess the person finding it, turning them into a super soldier that destroys the world they are on and leaves it to be "cocooned" for use by the Hivemasters.

One of these Scarabs is on its way to Earth when it's blasted by a Green Lantern. The Scarab escapes into subspace but reappears near Earth and crashes to the ground, crippled and short-circuiting. I imagine the damage to the Scarab is the reason that Blue Beetle will be able to utilize its powers while not being possessed by its malevolent influence.

Moving far, far, far forward in time, the scene changes to a high school in El Paso. Some jocks are acting like male chauvinist assholes. A drop out cholo threatens to kick their asses because they're being disgusting about a girl named Brenda del Vecchio who is having her Quinceañera soon. The cholo's name is Paco and he's there to pick up an invitation from Brenda to her party. Jaime is also there hanging out in the background and acting meek. Um, Jaime will be Blue Beetle or is already Blue Beetle or whatever, just so anyone with no idea about DC Comics will understand. He seems to be good friends with Brenda.

So the scene is set for Jaime and Paco and Brenda and Joey the Jerky Jock to have a great time at the party! But then Jaime's parents become total sticks in the mud! Like, sheesh!

That asterisk means this was translated from the Spanish. Which means Lo siento, mijo, pero and la casa de Amparo Cardenas have no English translation.

Jaime's parents refuse to let him go. But I bet he finds a way to go anyway! It's only, like, going to be, like, the total most amazing rager ever in the history of high school girls turning fifteen! If he misses it, he'll be an even bigger dork than he already is!

Jaime's parents won't explain why they won't let him set foot in Brenda's aunt's house but in the next few pages, the reader learns they were probably right not to let him go. Brenda's aunt is on the phone with some criminals trying to recover something for her. Probably the Scarab. But they've called her to let her know that someone else had gotten there first. That someone else: The Brotherhood of Evil! Now there's a trip down nostalgia boulevard.

Although these are the only two members not actually present.

The three criminals sent to retrieve the Scarab by Brenda's aunt attack the Brotherhood. I don't recognize any of them. They've probably all been created to be Blue Beetle's enemies in this series. As the fight rages on over the Scarab, they take it into the street where Warp is about to get away through a portal to Paris when he's hit by Paco's car. Jaime, having snuck out of the house, is there with him. The backpack containing the Scarab falls into the car and Jaime grabs it and runs off, taunting the villains. Oh, he does this so they don't kill Paco. Unless they already did kill Paco when the Day of the Dead (called 'Rompe Huesos' by his buddy) guy smashed his head into the steering wheel.

During the chase, this happens. Whoops!

And then Jaime is completely transformed into the new Blue Beetle!